Not that there were exceptionally high expectations for a Porsche that could be considered a competitor to the Honda CR-V. But did it really have to look like one?

Porsche styling comes in three flavors:

1. Mind-blowing
2. Elegantly poised
3. Controversially dumb

Category one belongs to the crazy 918 Spyder concept. Category two is all about the 911 and the Boxster. Category three is all the rest, including the Panamera, Cayenne and now, presumably, Macan. Actually, the Cayenne might fit into Category two. The longer it’s around, the more I consider it a real Porsche.

If pictures from AutoExpress are a true representation of what the Macan will be…umm, well, we can officially say the hype is over. The front looks like a Porsche, but from the side, how is this any different than a Nissan Rogue? Even the wheels scream econo-box. For a mass-produced $40,000-ish Porsche, though, I suppose it’s what we should have expected. At least some spirited performance will accompany the blandness.

The flagship is likely to use a 345bhp turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 sending power to all four wheels through a seven-speed PDK gearbox. Performance should be impressive and 0-62mph should take less than 5 seconds.

Okay, no CR-V will ever match that. And even the lesser engines, a 2.4-liter flat four and a 2.0-liter diesel, promise performance that should be at least somewhat Porsche-worthy.

While cousins with the Audi Q5, the Porsche will come only in AWD and include Porsche’s torque-vectoring technologies to offer class-leading grip levels and the ability to adjust ride height and suspension stiffness. So while the looks may not be what many of us have come to expect from Porsche, the genuine Stuttgart experience should be there. And you can be sure the Macan will sell just as well as the Cayenne has, even if only to suburban moms who want to show up their neighbors.

Looks like more fun to drive than the bloated Cayenne. I’m not sure what anyone expects from a company that has been making pretty much the same car for the past fifty years or so. Can you imagine if Ford’s main product still looked essentially like a 1963 Fairlane 500? Or GM’s was a 1963 Corvette? Or Jag still made the MK II as their hallmark product? Pretty weird, huh? But then that’s Porsche, the worlds hottest backwards car company.